Monday, July 07, 2008

Press getting tougher on Chavez?

A predicted effect on last week success with of Colombia against the FARC is that there will be less indulgence toward Chavez, now that it is clear that his mediator role was weak at best. Not even mentioning his "past" support for the terrorist group. The surprise is that already today we can read such things form the Wall Street Journal (expected) but also from more circumspect NYT.

Maria Anastasia gloats

The tile of her article, "FARC's 'Human Rights' Friends" sets the tone right there. Maria Anastasia O'Grady went all out in attacking many of the NGO set up for humanitarian reasons but of dubious intentions. The article comes with an embedded video that is amusing to watch. I am not sharing all of her view points on that but when I see the Swiss floundering on the Santos words yesterday, well, she might have more of a point than what I am willing to give her. Indeed, Colombia's defense minister words that the Swiss paid half a million in small bills to the FARC, found in Costa Rica courtesy of the Reyes computer, has finally awakened the Swiss if anything to refute them. But still, I could not find any Swiss major league demanding that RSR explains better its allegation of of the rescue having required 20 millions. In fact that RSR article seemed rather proud of the stir they caused by being the only ones mentioning that "payment", without nay need from their part to strengthen their claim a tad better. Which did not stop them form expecting more explanations from Santos. Ah! The Swiss arrogance! Must be that pure Alp water.

You never know who are really working for

This blogger has long said that Brazil in the long term would be the beneficiary of Chavez follies. Well, in a long article Simon Romero makes that case: "Quietly, Brazil Eclipses an Ally".

Basically as Venezuela under Chavez has been squandering its last opportunity to become an economic power house, Brazil has quietly multiplied by far its trade surplus with the half continent. In fact Simon Romero delicately details how Chavez has been taken for a ride by Lula who while declaring him the best president in 100 years has made sure that none of his initiatives succeeds, while at the same time making Venezuela increasingly dependent on Brazil. If Venezuela had a normal press corps, this article should be major discussion fodder on talk shows. When Chavez is gone, we will have left the US sphere of influence to fall into the Brazilian one. Maybe some can call that progress, but I will be left to wonder what woudl have happened if Venezuela had made better investment decisions and strengthened the Andean Community and its Caribean NON-Cuban links. As Romero sorts of implies, even the Colombia-Brazil relation might be more honest, sincere, true partner like, than the one with Venezuela.

"Cosas veredes, Sancho"

And in Miami, Chavez is a loser

To round up this a worthwhile analysis of Oppenheimer. Well, he has been criticizing Chavez for a long time starting with his now iconic "narcissist-leninist" adjective. For Andres, like for this blogger, the only card left to Chave is the US inability to rein its oil consumption which at 140USD a barrel allows for many costly msitakes by Chavez.

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